AAA-CPAProposed Regulations under Code Section 172 clarify the definition of "support" for the dependency allowance, indicating that paid health insurance premiums but not life insurance premiums are treated as support. The Proposed Regulations also provide that, where the highest adjusted gross income of two parents must be determined due to equal custody, all income on a joint tax return of one or both of the parents is to be counted.
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The Tax AdviserThe IRS alerted tax practitioners that it will soon be publishing their registration information online. The information was previously available only on a CD-ROM for a $35 fee for those who submitted a request to the IRS. The information will be available without cost.
The Freedom of Information Act requires the IRS to release certain information about people who hold preparer tax identification numbers and enrolled agents.READ MORE

AccountingWEB The IRS has added 29 "help icons" to Form 990-EZ, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt From Income Tax, to assist tax-exempt organizations in avoiding the most common mistakes when filing their annual returns. Nonexempt charitable trusts and Code Section 527 political organizations also use this form to provide the IRS with information required by Section 6033.
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RTThe IRS says that under the so-called FAST Act it will start certifying tax debt to the State Department, which may then refuse to issue or renew a taxpayer's passport. The FAST Act was passed by the Congress and signed into law by former President Barack Obama in 2015. The purpose is to provide long-term funding for transportation projects, including new highways.
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CPA Practice AdvisorAs retirement funds have shifted from defined benefit to defined contribution, Americans are required to directly manage their own retirement plans for which good investment advice is essential.
To ensure that investors receive sound investment advice, the Labor Department recently adopted a new rule that subjects brokers and investment advisers to a higher fiduciary standard — they must recommend investment products with the "best interest" of the beneficiaries in mind.READ MORE

ReutersU.S. corporate tax reform proposals are causing consternation among bond market players, who fear their implementation will drastically reduce issuance levels.
President Donald Trump and Republicans in the House of Representatives have plans to cut corporate tax rates, allow repatriation of cash stuck in overseas accounts and eliminate companies' ability to deduct debt interest expenses from tax — actions some think would hugely reduce companies' current reliance on debt.READ MORE

Bloomberg BNAA Republican plan to change the way exports and imports are taxed federally could drive states to battle for manufacturing business with tax credits and incentives.
"If you have a company that is looking to move manufacturing back to the U.S. because of the border adjustment tax," which may mean hundreds of jobs, "you can see why a state would want them to come," Mike Bernier, a senior manager of the national tax practice at Ernst & Young LLP, said during a Jan. 31 EY webinar about the state-side implications of potential federal tax changes.READ MORE